Ava DuVernay Spotlights the Horrors of Mass Incarceration in New Documentary "13th"

Director Ava DuVernay is taking on mass incarceration in her new documentary "13th." The title refers tot he 13th amendment of the U.S. Constitution which makes illegal involuntary servitude "except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted." It is this clause, the film argues, which sets the stage for the over incarceration of Black people in public and private prisons.

With appearances from Michelle Alexander, Jelani Cobb, Khalil Gibran Muhammad, DuVernay makes plain the problem and the path to correcting it.

DuVernay will make history when the film opens the New York Film Festival on September 30. The film will be available on Netflix and in select theaters on October 7.